Car-coupling.



N0- 633,024. PatentedNov. 28, I899. J. MEYER.

CAR CUUPLNG.

(Application filed on 26, 1898.)

5 Sheets-Sheet I.

(No Model.)

W NES SES M m: "cams PETERS w. Moro-urns" wnsnmrrrou. n. c.

J. MEYER.

CAR COUPLING.

(Application filed Oct. 28, 1898-) Patented Nov. 28, I899.

5 Sheets-Sheet 2.

(No Model.)

s I t VEIIITOR m: uonms mu: m. moro-um., wunmmou. a. c.

No. 638,024. Patented Nov. 28, I899.

.1. MEYER.

CAR COUPLING.

(Application filed Oct. 26, 1898.) (No Model.) I 5 Sheats-Sheet s.

wW/T/VESSES: r/vvmro l AIME/{758.

m: NORRIS vans 00.. PNQTO-LI'I'Y'QQ-WASNINOTON, n. c

No. 638,024.. Patented Nov. 28, I899. J. MEYER.

CAR COUPLING.

(Application filed Oct. 26, 1898.)

5 Sheets-Sheet 4,

(No Model.)

r h a Arrow 7 Noun]: FETER: 120., mum-mus wuumcn'cn u c .1. MEYER.

GAR COUPLING. (Application filed Oct. .26v 1898.)

Patented Nov. 28, I899".

(No Model.)

5 Sheats$heat 5.

V v/M55253 INVENTOR I ATTORNEYS.

we nonms PEYCRS ca. mowurnp msumcvou, D. c.

UNITED STATES PATENT 'QFFICE.

JULIUS MEYER, OF NEW YORK, Y.

CAR-COUPLING.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 638,024, dated November28, 1899.

Application filed October 26, 1898. Serial No. 694,617. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be itknown that I, JULIUS MEYER, a citizen of the United States,residing in the'city of New York, in the borough of Manhattan and Stateof New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inOar-Couplings,

of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to certain improvements in car-couplings of thattype in which a draw-head provided with an interior cavity, a knucklepivoted to said draw-head and provided with an inwardly-extending tailend, and a lock-block by which said knuckle is locked to or unlockedfrom said draw-head are employed, said knuckle being adapted tointerlock with a similar knuckle on the drawhead of an approaching carand couple automatically therewith.

My invention consists of a car-coupling which comprises a draw-head, aknuckle pivoted to the same, a gravity lock-block supported in the tailend of said knuckle and adapted to be supported by the tail end ininterlocking position with the knuckle and the draw-head, therebylocking the knuckle in its closed or coupled position.

My invention consists, further, of the means employed for'securelyholding the lock-block in said interlocking position, so as to preventits accidental release therefrom.

My invention consists, further, of a carcoupling comprising a draw-head,a knuckle pivoted thereto, a lock-block supported in the tail end of theknuckle and adapted to lock the same to the draw-head, and means forreleasing the lock-block from its interlocking position, so as to unlockthe knuckle from the draw-head and permit the swinging of the knuckleinto open or uncoupled position.

The invention consists, further, of means by which the lock-block can beset at different heights relatively to the bottom of the draw-head, soas either to interlock with said bottom or be carried by the knuckleabove the same or be dropped on the bottom.

My invention consists also of a car-coupling which comprises adraw-head, aknuokle pivoted to the same, a gravity lock-block located inthe tail endof said knuckle, and shelves at the end of said tail end,said lockblock being adapted to be supported on the lower shelf, so asto interlock with said knuckle and draw-head, thereby locking theknuckle in its closed or coupled position.

My invention consists, further, of a car coupling comprising adra\v-head, a knuckle pivoted to the same, a gravity lock-block locatedin the tail end of said knuckle, and shelves at the end of said tailend, said lockblock being adapted to be" transferred from the lower tothe upper shelf and to be supported on the latter clear of the bottom ofthe draw-head, so as to be unlocked from the same.

My invention consists, further, of a carcoupling which comprises adraw-head, a knuckle pivoted to the same, a gravity lockblock located inthe tail end of said knuckle, and means for producing a position of thelock-block which enables it to lock the knuckle to the draw-head whenthe former is returned into coupled position; and the inventionconsists, further, of the specific construction of thedraw-head,knuckle, and lockblock, as well as of means for actuating thelock-block, as will be fully described hereinafter, and finally pointedout in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 represents a horizontal sectionof my innproved car-coupling on line 1 1, Fig. 2, showing the knuckle inits locked or coupled position. Fig. 2 isa vertical transverse sectionon line -2 2, Fig. 1. Fig. 3 isa horizontal section of the car-couplingon line 3 3, Fig. 4, showing the position of the knuckle after it isunlocked from the draw-head and ready to swinginto open or uncoupledposition. Fig. i is a vertical transverse section on line 4: 4:, Fig. 3.Fig. 5 is a horizontal section of my improved car-coupling on line 5 5,Fig. 6, showing the knuckle in open position ready for coupling. Fig. 6is also a vertical transverse section on line 6 6, Fig. 3. Figs. 7and 8are vertical transverse sections on lines 7 7, Fig. l, and8 8, Fig. 3,showing the lock-block in locked and unlocked position,respectively,drawn on a larger scale. Fig. 9 is a perspective view of the key-rod andkey-head for operating the lock-block. Figs. 10 and 10 are respectivelya side view and a top view of the lock-block detached from thecar-coupling. Figs. ll and 11 are a rear view and a plan view of thetail end of the knuckle. Fig.

12 is a horizontal section of a simplified form of my improvedcar-coupling, and Fig. 13 is a side elevation of a modified form ofkey-rod and key-head.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts.

Referring to the drawings, A represents the draw-head of my improvedcarcoupling, which draw-head is provided with the usual shank B, bywhich it is attached to the bottom of the car. The draw-head has aninterior cavity, at one side of which the forwardlyextending lugs a aare arranged, between which the knuckle C is pivoted at c. The interiorcavity of the draw-headis formed by the bottom A, top A side walls A andA and the rear wall A On the outside of the side wall A are arranged thekeepers a and a in which is guided the. outer leg of a U- shaped key-rodF, that is provided at the end of its shorter inner leg with a key-headH. Within the cavity of the draw-head is arranged a forwardly-extendingabutment a, which is preferably located at the corner formed by the rearwall A and the side wall of the shank B, as shown in 1 and 3. At thecorner formed by the side wall A and the rear wall A is arranged in thebottom a slotted opening a of which the end adjacent to the cornercorresponds to the outlines of the key-head H, while the opposite end ofthe slot a is rounded off. The sides of the hole (1 connecting the freeends of the aforesaid outlines, are straight. The knuckle G is providedat its outer recessed end with vertical holes 0 which serve forreceiving an ordinary coupling-pin when the knuckle is to be coupledwith a draw-head having the oldstyle coupling-pin and link. The knuckleO is provided with a reaiwvardly-extending tail D, which has near itsend a circular hole surrounded by a raised or thickened portion d. Inthis raised portion cl is located a gravity lock-block E, which iscapable of vertical as well as of axial motion therein. The lock-block Eis provided with a projecting nose 6 at its side and with a centralkeyhole 6 in its bottom. 'That portion .of the raised portion cl whichis adjacent to the corner formed by the side and rear Walls A A isrecessed and provided with noses d- 61 which extend in an upwarddirection, so as to terminate near the top A of the draw-head. The nosesd d limit the axially-turning motion of the lock-block. When the nose eof the lock-block E is on the bottom shelf 01 of the recess of theportion d, it rests with its horizontal top face directly below ashoulder d, which is formed below the upwardly-extending nose C1 Theshoulder d prevents the accidental unlocki ng of the kn uckle,which mayoccur by the sudden jumping up or gradual creeping up of the lock-blockE when the car is in motion. The nose 6' of the lock-- block E has onevertical side and is rounded off at the opposite lower corner. When thenose e is located at the bottom shelf d of the recess, its vertical sideis adjacent to an i11'-' clined portion (1 of the recess. (Shown inFigs. 11 and 11 In this position of the nose 6 the lock-block E is inits lowermost or lookingbposition. The nose 6 of the lock-block Eprojects over the key-head H, the key-rod of which is of a squarecross-section, so as to prevent the turning of the key-rod in thekeepers a and a The key-rod F is provided with a projecting pin f, whichrests on the upper keeper a and supports thereby the keyrod in itslowermost position. The pin f fixes the key-head H at such a distancefrom the nose 6 of the lock-block E that any upward jumps of thekey-head while the car is in motion will not touch the nose 6. Thekey-head H is formed of an inclined portion h and a pointed orbeak-shaped portion 712. The key-head H is so located below the nose 6of the lock-block E that it is capable of exerting a vertically-liftingaction and a side pressure on the bottom of the nose e. When by anupward pull on the chain G the keyrod F and key-head H are lifted, theslanting face of the portion h engages the nose 9 and turns it in ahorizontal direction until its lower edge reaches the foot of theinclined portion 01 of the recessed portion d. The beak-shaped portion Wis next brought into action and, together with the wedge-shaped portionh, moves up the nose 6 along the inclined portion 01 then up thevertical face (1 of the recess, and lifts it over the apex of the same.The correspondingly-curved ridge of the beak-shaped portion h of thekey-head H delivers then the nose 6' onto a shelf (1 of the recess. Thelock-block describes, therefore, by the lifting action of the key-head,first, a horizontally-turning motion, then an upwardly-slanting motion,the turning continuing, then a vertical motion, the turning stopping,and then a downwardly-slanting motion, the turning again continuing inthe same direction as before. \Vhen the nose e has been placed on theshelf 61 the lock-block E is held in its raised and unlocked position,its bottom being above the opening in the bottom A of the draw-head andclearing said bottom A. A chain I is fastened at one end at z" to thekey-head H and at the other end at i to thebottom, near the face-wall ofthe draw-head A. The chain I-extends diagonally across the bottom of thedraw-head in the direction of the longitudinal center line of the hole aWhen the key-head H has been lifted to the height at which it deliversthe nose 6 upon the shelf d the chain I comes into contact with the tailend D of the knuckle, and when the lifting is continued it comes incontact with the edge of the hole a at the under side of the bottom ofthe drawhead through a slot in the rim around the edge of said hole.Before the latter contact takes place the chain stretches in nearlystraight lines from its fastening i with the draw-head to the edge ofthe tail end D, and thence to its fastening t" on the key-head.

foo

When the contact of the chain with the kn uckle takes place, it formstwo angles, one at the edge of the hole a and the other at the shiftingpoint of contact with the tail end D of the knuckle. During thisoperation the chain bears continuously on the tail end D and exerts aside pressure on the same, which turns it inwardly, and thereby swingsthe knuckle on its-pivot. While the knuckle is thus turned, its tail endD carries the lockblock E along, the same being retained in the recess(1 at some distance from the bottom A until the nose e strikes againstthe abutment 0. at the rear wall A of the draw-head. The striking of thenose (3 against the abutment a while the movement of the tail end Dcontinues moves the shelf (1 from under the nose e until the latterclears the vertical edge d whereupon the lock-block drops into therecessed portion d to the bottom of the drawhead. This is effected atthe beginning of the swinging motion of the tail-end D in order to makethe subsequent automaticlocking of the knuckle independent of the anglethrough which the knuckle swings. When the kn uckle is unlocked, asdescribed, the key-rod F and the key-head H drop down by their ownweight to their normal positions in the drawhead. When by the approachof the cars to be coupled or for some other cause the knuckle C ispushed in, it takes along the lockblock E, which by its nose e is heldon the face at in the position given to it before by the abutment, andtherefore moved past the abutment 0. until the hole in its tail end Dregisters with the hole in the bottom A of the draw-head. The lock-blockE will then drop into the hole a its nose e being guided along theinclined portion d under the shoulder 01 of the portion d to the bottomshelf 01 of the recess, at which point the lock-block remains suspendedin interlocking engagement with the draw-head and tail end. The pull onthe knuckle C is transferred by the pin 0 to the lugs a and by theengagement of the tail end D with the lock-block E to the bottom of thedraw-headA. The brakeman mayreadily see by looking under the draw-headwhether or.

not the knuckle is in locked position. He can readily move by hand thelock-block into its looking or unlocking position by inserting aportable key from below into the key-socket e in the bottom of thelock-block E and then turning the lock-block by means of said key.

In some cases, especially when a simpler construction is desired, thekey-rod, with its accessories, can be dispensedwith, as shown in Fig.12, in which case the lock-block can be actuated either by the keyinserted in the key-socket of the lock-block or even by hand only.Inplace of the knuckle-operating chain a stationary wedge-piece F on theinner leg of the key-rod may be used, as shown in Fig. 13. Whatever,however, be the means for operating the lock-block, it is necessary inall cases that the knuckle and lock-block assume successively threedistinct positions in different planes relatively to the bottom of thedraw-headfirst, the locked position, in which the lock-block is droppedinto the hole in the bottom of the draw-head and locks the knuckle tothe same; second, the unlocked position, in which the lock-block israised onto theupper shelf of the recessed portion 01 of the tail end,so as to permit the starting of the opening movement of the knuckle,when the nose of the lock-block by striking the abutment at the rearpart of the draw-head will turn the lock-block back to such an extentthat it can drop in the portion d in the tail end of the knuckle ontothe bottom of the draw-head, and, third, the ready-for-couplingposition, in which the lock-block rests on the bottom of the draw-headand slides over the same when the knuckle is in the act of coupling, soas to drop back into the hole in the bottom of the draw-head and lockthe coupling into closed or coupled position.

My improved car-coupling may be operated either mechanically fromoutside of the track-i. a, from the side of a freight-car or theplatform of a passenger-car-and it may be operated with equal facilityby hand, in which case the brakeman has to step in between the cars whencoupling. The lockblock may be unlocked mechanically and lockedautomatically, or it may be unlocked mechanically and locked by hand, orit may be unlocked by hand and locked automatically, or the unlocking aswell as the locking of the same may be accomplished by hand by means ofthe portable key.

To unlock the closed knuckle mechanically from outside of the track, thekey-rod, which in that case forms part of my improved carcoupling, ispulled up, so that its head engages the nose of the lock-block, turnsit, and turns and lifts it out of its interlocking position with theknuckle and draw-head into a raised position in the tail end of theknuckle, in which it clears the bottom of the drawhead, and consequentlypermits the knuckle to swing freely on its pivot. The swinging of theknuckle is effected either by the pulling of the other knuckle when thecars are uncoupling or by imparting to the key-rod a second upward pull,whereby the chain I is also lifted. The chain is thereby first broughtto a bearing with the outside of the tail end of the knuckle and thendrawn taut, so as to exert a side pressure on the said tail end, wherebythe latter is moved inwardly and the outer end of the knuckle outwardly.The chain can also move the knuckle from its intermediate unlockedposition by the final lifting of the key-rod into uncoupled positionwhenever required. At the beginning of this pivotal motion the nose ofthe lockblock strikes the abutment on the draw-head and later leaves theupper shelf in the recess of the tail end, whereupon the lock-blockdrops down upon the bottom of the draw-head, the nose'of the lock-blockthen being in contact with the vertical part of the recess and 4'. me a.

the abutment of the draw-head when the knuckle interlocks with anotherone-i. 6., when the tail end moves outwardly. During this return swingthe lock-block glides along on the bottom of the draw-head until thehole in the knuckle registers with the hole in the bottom of thedraw-head, when the lock-block drops and interlocks therewith. Duringthe dropping of the lock-block its nose strikes the inclined part of therecess, and is thereby deflected further in the direction in which ithas been turned in clearing the upper shelf, so as to slip under theprojecting shoulder of the tail end. Should the lock-block jump up undera severe shock on the draw-head by the moving train or should thelock-block creep upin consequence of repeated lesser shocks, its nosewill strike against this projecting shoulder and be returned thereby tothe bottom of the recess.

My improved car-coupling has the advantage that the knuckle-pin and thelock-block moving in the tail end of the knuckle are located at one sideof the center line of. the draw-head and mutually correct each other intheir straining effect on the draw-head. It has the further advantagethat the middle portion of the interior cavity of the drawhead and theshank are unobstructed, offering no point of attack to a kicking linkshould my improved car-coupling be coupled with an old-stylelink-and-pin coupling and leaving the center free for the tail-bolt.

My improved coupling has the further advantage of a comparatively simpleconstruction and that it can be readily operated either from the side ortop of a freight-car or from the platform of a passenger-car without thebrakeman going in between the cars.

Having thus described my invention, I claimas new and desire to secureby Letters Patent-'- 1. The combination, with a draw-head having aninterior cavity and a hole in its bottom, of a swinging knuckle having ahole in its tail end, a lock-block within the cavity of the draw-headand located in the hole of said tail end and capable of a limitedaxially-turning motion, and means for limiting said axial motion,substantially as set forth.

2. The combination, with a draw-head having an interior cavity and ahole in its bottom, of a swinging knuckle having a hole in its tail end,and a lock-block within said cavity and located in the hole of said tailend and capable of being simultaneously axially turnable and verticallymovable in said hole of the tail end, substantially as set forth.

3. The combination, with a draw-head having an interior cavity and ahole in its bottom, of a swinging knuckle having a hole in its tail end,and a lock-block within said cavity and located in the hole of said tailend and capable of'being simultaneously axially turnable and Verticallymovable in said hole of the tail end, and means for imparting saidaxially-turning and vertically-sliding motion to the lock-block,substantially as set forth.

4. The combination, with a draw-head having an interior cavity and ahole in its bottom, of a-swinging knuckle having a hole in its tail endplaced in register with the said hole in the bottom of the draw-head, alockblock within said cavity and located in the hole of the tail end ofthe knuckle and adapted to interlock with the bottom of the draw-head,and means for axially turning the lock-block in said holes of thedraw-head and tail end, substantially as set forth.

5. The combination, with a draw-head having an interior cavity and ahole in its bottom, of a swinging knuckle having a hole in its tail endplaced in register with the said hole in the bottom of the draw-head, alockblock within said cavity and located in the hole of the tail end ofthe knuckle and adapted to interlock with the bottom of the draw-head,means for vertically moving said lock-block in the holes of thedraw-head and tail end, and means for axially turning said lock-block insaid holes, substantially as set forth.

6. The combination, with a draw-head having an interior cavity and ahole in its bottom, of a swinging knuckle having a hole in its tail endplaced in register with the said hole in the bottom of the draw-head, alockblock within said cavity and located in the hole of the tail end ofthe knuckle and adapted to interlock with the bottom of the draw-head,and means for simultaneously turning and vertically moving thelock-block in the holes of the draw-head and tail end, substantially asset forth.

'7. The combination,with a draw-head having a hole in its bottom, of aswinging knuckle having a hole inits tail end placed in register withthe said hole in the bottom of the drawhead, a lock-block in the saidhole of the tail end of the knuckle adapted to interlock with the bottomof the draw-head and capable of a limited vertical motion whileinterlocked, and means located on said tail end for limiting thevertical motion of the lock-block while in the holes of the draw-headand tail end, substantially as set forth.

8. The combination,with a draw-head, ofa

swinging knuckle, supporting-shelves at the end of its tail end, and alock-block located in said tail end and supportable on said shelves,substantially as set forth.

9. The combination,with a draw-head, of a swinging knuckle,supporting-shelves at the end of its tail end, anda lock-blocksupportable thereon and adapted to be axially turned on said shelves,substantially as set forth.

10. The combination, with a draw-head, of a swinging knuckle,supporting-shelves at the end of its tail end, and a lock-blocksupportable thereon and adapted to be axially turned between saidshelves, substantially as set forth.

11. The combination,with a draw-head havinga hole in its bottom, of aswinging knuckle, shelves at the end of its tail end, and alockblocksupportable thereon and capable of being vertically movable from oneshelf to the other, substantially as set forth.

12. The combination,withadraw-head having a hole inits bottom, ofaswinging knuckle, shelves at the end of its tail end, and a lockblocksupportable thereon, capable of being vertically movable from one shelfto the other, and adapted to interlock with the bottom of the draw-head,substantially as set forth.

13. The combination,with a draw-head having a hole in its bottom, ofaswinging knuckle pivoted to said draw-head, and having a thickenedportion at the end of its tail end and shelves in said thickenedportion, and a lock-block supportable thereon, capable of beingvertically movable from one shelf to the other, and adapted to interlockwith the bottom of the draw-head, substantially as set forth.

14. The combination,with a draw-head having an interior cavity and ahole in its bottom, of a swinging knuckle having a hole in its tail endand a recess in the side wall of said hole, and a lock-block within saidcavity and located in the hole of the tail end, substantially as setforth. 7

15. Thecombination,withadraw-headhaving an interior cavity and a hole inits bottom, of a swinging knuckle having a hole in its tail end and arecess in the side wall of said hole, said recess having an upper shelfand a lock-block within said cavity and located in the hole of the tailend, anda' lower bottom shelf, substantially as set forth.

16. Thecombination,withadraw-headhaving an interior cavity and a hole inits bottom, of a swinging knuckle having a hole in its tail end and arecess in the side wall of said hole, said recesshaving an upper shelf,a lower bottom shelf, a vertical face adjacent to the upper shelf and aslanting face that connects the vertical face with the bottom shelf ofthe recess, and a lock-block within said cavity and located in the holeof the tail end, substantially as set forth.

17. The combination, with a draw-head having an interior cavity and aholein its bottom, of a swinging knuckle having a hole in its tail endand a recess in the side wall of said hole, said recess having a bottomshelf and a shoulder projecting from the side wall of the recess oversaid bottom shelf, and a lockblock within said cavity and located in thehole of the tail end, substantially as set forth.

18. The combination, with a draw-head having a hole in its bottom, ofaswinging knuckle having a hole with a recess in its tail end, saidrecess having abottom shelf and a shoulder projecting from the side wallof the recess over said bottom shelf, and a lock-block in the said holeof the tail end, adapted to interlock withthe bottom of the draw-headand capable of a limited vertical motion in said holes of the knuckleand the draw-head and adapted to be limited in its vertical motion bythe said shoulder in the said recess, substantially as set forth.

1 9. The combination,with a draw head hav ing an interior cavity and ahole in its bottom, of a swinging knuckle having a hole in its tail end,a lock-block within said cavity and located in said hole, and a nose onthe said lock-block, substantially as set forth.

20. The combination,withadraw-head having an interior cavity and a holein its bottom, of a swinging knuckle having a hole in its tail end, alock-block within said cavity and located in said hole, and a nose onthe said lock-block, said nose having one vertical side and onerounded-01f lower edge, substantially as set forth.

21. The combinatiomwithadraw-headhaving a hole in its bottom, of aswinging knuckle having a hole in its tail end and a recess in the sidewall of said hole, a lock-block located in the said hole, and anose onthe lockblock, said nose projecting through said -recess to the outsideof the said tail end of the knuckle, substantially as set forth.

22. Thecombination,withadraw-headhaving a hole in its bottom, of aswinging knuckle having a hole in its tail end and a recess in the sidewall of said hole, a lock-block lo cated in the holes of the draw-headand tail end, a nbse on the lock-block, said nose projecting throughsaid recess to the outside of the said tail end of the knuckle, andmeans for engaging said nose so as to turn the lock-block on itsvertical axis, substantially as set forth.

23. Thecombinatiomwithadraw-headhaving a hole in its bottom, of aswinging knuckle having a hole in its tail end and a recess in the sidewall of said hole, a lock-block located in the holes of the draw-headand tail end, anose on the lock block, said nose projecting through saidrecess to the outside of the said tail end of the knuckle, and means forengaging said nose for imparting a vertical motion to the saidlock-block, substantially as set forth.

24. The combination,with adraw-head having a hole in its bottom, of aswinging knuckle having a hole in its tail end and a recess in the sidewall of said hole, alock-block located in the holes of the draw-head andtail end, a nose on the lock'block, said nose projecting through saidrecess to the outside of the said tail end of the knuckle, and means forengaging said nose so as to impart simultaneously an axially-turningmot-ion and a vertical motion to the loclcblock, substantially as setforth.

25.. The combination,with a draw-head having a hole in its bottom, of aswinging knuckle having a hole with a recess in the side wall of thesame in its tail end and a shoulder projecting from the said side wallover the bottom of the said recess, a lock-block capable of a limitedvertical motion located in the holes of the draw-head and tail end andadapted to interlock with the bottom of the drawhead, and a nose on thesaid lock-block projecting under said shoulder so as to be limited inits vertical motion by the same,.substantially as set forth.

26. The combinati0n,with a d raw-head, of a swinging knuckle having inits tail end a hole with a recess in the side wall of the same, alock-block pivoted in said tail end and having a projecting nose, and anupper shelf in the said recess adapted to support the lockblock clear ofthe bottom of the draw-head, substantially as set forth.

27. The combination,with a draw-head, of a swinging knuckle having inits tail end a hole with a recess in the side wall of the same, a

lock-block pivoted in said tail end and having v a hole with a recess inthe side wall of the same, a lock-block within said cavity and pivotedin said tail end and havinga projecting nose, an upper shelf in the saidrecess adapted to support the lock-block, and an abutment on the insideof the draw-head, substantially as set forth.

29. The combination,with a draw-head, of a swinging knuckle having inits tail enda hole with a recess in the side wall of the same, alock-block pivoted in said tail end and having a projecting nose, anupper shelf in the said recess adapted to support the lock-block, and anabutment on the inside of the draw-head, said abutment arresting thenose of the lockblock so as to push it off the upper shelf and cause thelock-block to drop upon the bottom of the draw-head, substantially asset forth.

30. The combi n ation,with a draw-head having a hole in its bottom, of aswinging knuckl'e having a tail end, a lock-block guided in said tailend, mechanism for unlocking the lock-block from the draw-head, andvertically-moving mechanism actuated by said unlocking mechanism forswinging the tail end of the knuckle inwardly, substantially as setforth.

31. Thecombinatiomwithadraw-headhaving a slotted hole in its bottom, ofa swinging knuckle having a tail end, a lock-block located in said tailend, mechanism for unlocking the lock-block from said draw-head, andmeans actuated by said unlocking mechanism in the direction of andthrough said slotted hole for swinging said tail end with the lockblockinwardly, substantially as set forth.

32. The combinatioruwith a draw-head having a hole in its bottom, of aswinging knucblock with the draw-head and tail end, and

means for carrying the lock-block into three different planes relativelyto the bottom of the draw-head, firstly interlocking with the bottom ofthe draw-head for coupling, secondly above said bottom for permittingthe inward swinging of the tail end, and thirdly resting on said bottomin position ready for recoupling, substantially as set forth.

34. The combination, with a draw-head, of a knuckle pivoted to the same,a lock-block guided in the tail end of said knuckle, means for producingthe interlocking of the lockblock with the draw-head and tail end, akeyrod and key-head adapted for turning and lifting said look-block soas to unlock the knuckle from the draw-head, and means for engaging thetail end of the knuckle for swinging' it inwardly into open or unlockedposition, substantially as set forth.

35. The combination, with a draw-head, of a knuckle pivoted to the same,a lock-block guided in the tail end of the knuckle and having aprojecting nose, a vertically-sliding keyrod having a key-head engagingthe nose of the lock-block so as to impart an axially turning andlifting motion to the same, and a chain connected with said key-head andadapted to produce the swinging of the knuckle into open or uncoupledposition, substantially as set forth.

36. In a car-coupling of the class described, a knuckle provided with ahole in its tail end, a recess at one side of said hole, and withupwardly-projecting ,noses at opposite sides of said recess,substantially as set forth.-

37. Inacar-couplingof the class described, a gravity lock-block, of lesslength than the interior height of the draw-head and provided with aprojecting nose having a vertical side and a rounded-off lower corner,substantially as set forth.

38. In a car-coupling of the class described, a key provided with akey-head inclined at one end and beak-shaped at the other end,substantially as set forth.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention I have signed myname in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

' JULIUS MEYER. Witnesses:

PAUL GoEPEL, M. HENRY WURTZEL.

